Eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring or hard. The following are three of my easiest, go-to recipe creations for a quick meal or snack that include delicious flavours, lots of vegetables — score! — and they can all be prepared in 20 minutes or less.

Mango guacamole

his is one of my favorite recipes to make for potlucks and to serve to friends. It also works great as a snack or appetizer. This does not keep well in the fridge however, as the avocado will turn brown very quickly. It’s best eaten directly after preparation. Serve with tortilla chips, pita bread or even on top of a taco salad. This recipe can serve 2-4 people, although I am also guilty of devouring the whole thing alone.

Ingredients:

3 soft avocados

2 ripe mangoes, medium size

Half a red onion

2 tomatoes, large

1 tsp garlic powder (add more to taste)

1 tsp chili powder (add more to taste)

½ tsp black pepper (add more to taste)

Directions:

1. Peel the avocados and put them into a medium bowl. Take a fork and mash them up, leaving some chunks of the avocado if desired.

2. Peel the mangoes and chop finely. Stir into avocado mixture.

3. Chop both the tomato and onion finely and stir into the mixture.

4. Add the spices. Taste the guacamole and add more spice if necessary. Usually the amount listed above is good for me, but I don’t have a very high spice tolerance. Add more to give the guacamole more kick.

5. Serve immediately.

Greek salad

This is a variation on a classic recipe, with lots of chopped veggies and a delicious dressing. This recipe serves 3-4 people, so you can easily prepare it for a social gathering or cut the portions in half to make less. If you pour dressing over the whole salad, it will keep for up to one day in the fridge. To keep it fresh longer, leave some of the veggies and dressing separate and toss them together when you’re ready to eat it later. This salad is great with a glass of red wine or on a bed of greens.

Salad:

1.5 cups cherry tomatoes

¾ of a whole cucumber, sliced into thick pieces

½  cup red onion, sliced into thick pieces (skip this if you’re not an onion fan)

1 red pepper, sliced into thick pieces

1 green pepper, sliced into thick pieces

½ cup feta, chopped into small pieces

Options: add 1 cup cooked asparagus, cut into smaller pieces or add 1 cup sugar snap peas, chopped in half.

Dressing:

4 tbsp olive oil

2.5 tbsp red wine vinegar

2.5 tbsp lemon juice

2 cloves garlic, pressed (or 1 tsp garlic powder)

Pepper, to taste

1 tbsp dill

1 tbsp oregano

Directions:

1. Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl except for the feta.

2. Add the dressing and toss thoroughly. Put the feta on last, sprinkling it evenly overtop of the salad.

3. Serve immediately.

Peanut sauce

This is a super easy sauce that takes almost no time to whip up and can be used in multiple ways. I often dress a salad with it, use it as a stir fry sauce, drizzle it over a bowl of rice or even dip some veggie sticks in it. It can keep in the fridge for up to two days, but be warned that it will thicken considerably the longer it sits in the fridge.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 clove garlic, pressed (or 1 tsp garlic powder)

1 tsp chili powder

½ tsp black pepper

¼ cup water

⅓ cup peanut butter, chunky or smooth

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients into a NutriBullet or blender and blend. Add more peanut butter if it looks too runny, because the consistency will depend on the brand of peanut butter you use. I usually use a natural crunchy peanut butter, but other options will work. If the sauce is too thick, add a little bit more water to get the desired consistency.

If you have a recipe that you’ve created and would like to submit it for Student Kitchen, send it to culture@thesheaf.com and your recipe could be selected for print!

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Photos and text: Naomi Zurevinski / Editor-in-Chief